Dental dilating-forceps, or appliance for dental or surgical use.



PATENTED NOV. 29, 1904.

G. H. PARSONS. DENTAL DILATING FORGBPS,0R APPLIANCE FOR DENTAL 0R SURGICAL USE,

, llll APPLIOATION FILED APR. 20, 1904.

- no MODELL WITNESSES: fioa a. @4244, I

A TTOR/VEYS T NiTEn STATES Patented November 29, 1904.

PATENT FFICE.

DENTAL DlLATlNG-FORCEPS, R APPLlANCE FOR DENTAL OR SURGICAL USE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent NO. 776,348, dated November 29, 1904.

' Application filed .Ipril 20, 1904. Serial No. 204,035. (No model.)

To LLZZ whom it Wmy concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE HENRY PAR- soNs, a citizen of the United States, residing at East St. Louis, in the county of St. Clair and State of Illinois, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Dental Dilating- Forceps, or Appliances for Dental orSurgical Use, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention is an appliance or implement adapted for use in distending the mouth of a patient to facilitate inspection and. the performance of dental and surgical operations.

The details of construction, arrangement, and operation of the appliance are as hereinafter described, reference being had to the I accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective View of the appliance, and Figs. 2 and 3 show its practical application. Figs. 4 and 5 are perspective views of the appliance in different positions.

The appliance is composed of horizontal jaws A, shanks B therefor, a central stem or bar (1, and a slide E.

The appliance is preferably formed of one piece of spring-wire. The same is looped at the middle and the members then twisted together to form the central stem or bar C. The shanks B diverge from one end of the stem, and their top portions 6 are bent horizontally and pass by each other and through the loop 0, formed on one end of the stem C. The parts Z) are then bent upward and curved inward, as shown at Z), and then extended horizontally or at right angles to the stem G to form the jaws A. The wire is returned upon itself and the ends curved inward toward each other in forming the jaws A, and the said ends are provided with enlargements a to prevent them from abrading or otherwise injuring the mouth of the patient. It will be seen that the ends of the jaws are formed by looping or bending the Wire and are turned slightly outward or laterally from each other, being thus inclined in an opposite direction to the ends a. The slide D may be formed of a metal plate having its ends bent inward to form eyes through which the spring-shanks B pass, as shown. The jaws A are held normally down toward each other by the resiliency of the spring-shan ks B and are separated widely when the shanks are brought toward each other or into nearly parallel position, as shown in Figs. 1, 4, and 5. The jaws may be thus distended by applying lateral pressure at the points 0 {I}, Fig. 1, by means of the thumb and finger, or this may be effected by moving the slide D upward-that is to say, toward the jaws-as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5. The slide D is, however, ordinarily employed for holding the jaws locked in any adjustment which may be effected manually.

In practical use of the appliance the stem 0, with the shanks B, is held in vertical position either above or below the jaws, as indicated in Figs. 4 and 5. Of course the position assumed by the stem and the shanks will be according to the inspection or operation which it is desired to make or perform. The

, jaws A being introduced in the mouth of the patient and the shanks B then compressed, the jaws will be distended, so as to hold the cheeks of the patient away from the teeth or gums, and the bent and spherical ends a of the jaws may be adjusted under the upper lip, as shown in Fig. 4, or under the lower lip, as in Fig. 5. In dental operations such adjustment ofthe appliance cuts off saliva from the teeth, so that the tooth to be treated or filled is kept perfectly dry, the cheeks being held from the work, so that a rubber dam is generally unnecessary. Further, the appliance gives a maximum amount of space in which to operate upon the jaw or the teeth.

The appliance is particularly useful to a dentist in taking impressions of the upper and lower jaws, and especially in the case of aged patients, in whom the bone or alveolar process has become absorbed to a large extent, so that the lips and cheek are greatly shrunken, and hence lie very close to the jaw and interfere greatly with the manipulations required. The appliance holds the lips and the cheeks so far distended that the impression-cup may be inserted and removed with Very little difiiculty. The appliance is also particularly applicable in setting of gold crowns, since by holding the lips and cheek distended or away from the gums rolls of cotton may be easily placed alongside of the teeth to absorb the saliva and the crown set without danger of access of moisture. It is also apparent that for surgical operations upon the jaw or throat the appliance will be of the highest utility.

In practice the appliance may be nickel or silver plated to enhance its ornamental appearance and facilitate cleaning and polishing.

Vhile 1 preferably construct the implement in the manner described, it is to be understood thatI do not in all cases intend to restrict myself thereto, but to make the jaws and shanks independent of each other and rigidly connect them or to make the shanks independent of the central bar or stem and properly connect the same therewith and in some cases to dispense with the central bar or stem.

My dilating or expansion forceps are highly useful for setting broken jaws, since the cheeks can be expanded so that the operation can be performed with ease to the operator and patient. In fact, it aids in every operation in the oral cavity, such as disease of the antrum or the extraction of wisdom-teeth, when chloroform is taken, also in the operation of removing the tonsils or filling teeth.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. The improved appliance for the purpose specified,comprisingspring-shanks having eX- tensions arranged practically at right angles thereto, and jaws which are practically parallel to each other and arranged at right angles to the shanks, and a central stem having a loop through which the shanks pass, all the said parts being formed integrally or of a single piece of spring wire, substantially as described.

2. The improved appliance for the purpose specified, comprising spring shanks whose free ends are bent substantially at a right angle, and project in opposite directions, and jaws connected with said shanks and arranged practically at a right angle thereto, substantially as described.

3. The improved appliance for the purpose specified, comprising spring-shanks, having end portions projecting inward or toward each other, jaws arranged parallel and at right angles to the shanks and having end portions which are curved toward each other, and thus serve, when the appliance is inserted in the mouth of a patient, to lie in contact with and distend the lips, substantially as described.

4:. The improved appliance comprising a central stem having a loop at one end, springshanks connected with the opposite end and working through the aforesaid loop, and jaws arranged parallel and substantially at right angles to the shanks of which they form rigid extensions, the saidjjaws having reverse members whose ends are curved inward toward each other and provided with enlarged heads to adapt them for the function specified.

5. The improved appliance comprising jaws arranged substantially parallel, and shanks connected therewith and having end portions which project in opposite directions and work past each other, and a slide applied to the shanks for adjusting them and holding them fixed in any adjustment, substantially as described.

6. The improved appliance comprising shanks whose free ends are bent in opposite directions and work past each other, jaws which are arranged at an angle to the shanks and substantially parallel to each other, the same being formed by continuations of the shanks and having reversely-bent portions whose terminals project inward toward each other, substantially as described.

7. A dental appliance comprising a central stem or bar having a loop at one end, springshanks connected with the other end of said stem and arranged practically parallel to the latter, the free ends of the shanks being bent inward toward each other and at right angles to the stem and sliding past each other through the aforesaid loop, and jaws forming continuations of the shanks and arranged practically parallel so that they are adapted to enter-a patients mouth, as and for the purposes set forth.

GEORGE H. PARSONS. l/Vitnesses:

JAs. VVALTMAN, MAE BRADY. 

